Everyone has their own way of making it. Some people use lemon juice, some people use lime juice. Pureed smooth or chunky. With or without onion, tomato, jalapeno, mango, garlic, cumin or cilantro. And yes, some people put mayonnaise in their guacamole. The guy who ran the deli counter at my corner market whipped his secret guacamole (secret because you had to live in the neighborhood for years before he’d let you know about the batch he’d make on Saturdays), with sour cream and when you raved about how good it was, he’d say, “South American guacamole. Better than all other guacamole.”

I recently asked my readers how they made their guacamole so we could have a little fun in the weeks leading up to one of the biggest snacking day of the year, the Super Bowl. It was going to be Super Bowl Guacamole Week, but then I received more than a week’s worth of recipes and it blew up into an extravaganza of avocados.

Today’s recipe comes from my pal, HollyAnderson. Holly was the one who asked me to be a part of the original Ladies(…) after bonding in the Deadspin/Defamer super collider and we’ve been friends ever since. These days you can find Holly running the big show over at SI’s The Campus Union where you can find her covering college football in a smart, funny and irreverent way that only she brings to the conversation (because college football needs more drama club stories).

It came to no surprise to me that Holly’s guacamole would be the recipe submitted that was closest to my own. We share similar tastes in men, Pro Bowls, music and movies; of course our guacamole would be spiritual avocado cousins. What makes Holly’s guacamole special is the extra kick of lime zest, an addition that’s going to find a permanent home in my own guacamole from now on. The avocado comes alive in this recipe and isn’t buried behind heat. A purist’s delight.

(Cook’s note: Since Holly was calling this the IRON FIST of Guacamole, I decided to use a meat tenderizer on the garlic, because in my mind a hammer is a fist and my fist probably couldn’t smash garlic without some sort of injury to both my hand and my ego.)

Zest one lime over garlic, squeeze in juice from two limes, and stir with a fork. Set aside to marinate a little.

Peel and pit avocados and mash haphazardly in a larger bowl, either with a potato masher or two forks. It shouldn’t take long, and you’ll want to keep things very chunky; the lime and tomato juice will bond it together.

Roughly chop the tomato and onion (onion smaller; do not kill your guests) and combine with avocados, only stirring as much as necessary. We want big pieces of everything.

Me: Do you de-seed the tomatoes? (Surprisingly, not everyone does.)
Holly: I do not, because I usually use Romas around Super Bowl time (because in our crummy tomato winter, everything else is pink and gross) and they’re not too gelatinous inside.

Stir in garlic-lime mixture. I will occasionally find the need to add more liquid at this point for bonding purposes; this is what the third lime is for.

Strip cilantro leaves from stems and tear them with your hands if they’re really big, but otherwise just throw ’em in the bowl and stir to combine.

Taste at this point and tweak to your liking; I put salt in there because sometimes it really seems like it needs it, depending on the flavor of the particular fruits and veggies therein, but I usually go without.

(Cook’s note: I salted this batch of guacamole, but that’s probably because I would salt my salt if I could get away with it.)

Holly: p/p/s Miz Naincy calls this “Chunky-Cado Stuff,” because it’s not pureed like hers, but I find that name appalling.
Me: HA! I like her name. Becky from NYC (Halfbee) sent me a guac recipe so spicy and sweet, I’m calling it the Velvet Glove of Guacamole and have been looking for names for the other recipes.
Holly: Mine is now the IRON FIST of Guacamole, since it’s chunky! I dub it!
Me: Done!

You know how I said this was the spiritual avocado cousin of my own guacamole? Add a teaspoon of cumin and you’ve got my guacamole recipe.

Lots of lime make for zesty guacamole that is long on flavor without the heat.

Ingredients

THINGS YOU WILL NEED

4 medium avocados

2 smallish tomatoes

1/2 small red onion

2-3 limes

2 cloves garlic

Fresh cilantro

Kosher salt (highly optional)

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT

Potato masher (optional)

Citrus zester or fine grater

Instructions

Crush garlic cloves and throw in small bowl.

Zest one lime over garlic, squeeze in juice from two limes, and stir with a fork. Set aside to marinate a little.

Peel and pit avocados and mash haphazardly in a larger bowl, either with a potato masher or two forks. It shouldn’t take long, and you’ll want to keep things very chunky; the lime and tomato juice will bond it together.

Roughly chop the tomato and onion (onion smaller; do not kill your guests) and combine with avocados, only stirring as much as necessary. We want big pieces of everything.

Stir in garlic-lime mixture. I will occasionally find the need to add more liquid at this point for bonding purposes; this is what the third lime is for.

Strip cilantro leaves from stems and tear them with your hands if they’re really big, but otherwise just throw ’em in the bowl and stir to combine.

Taste at this point and tweak to your liking; I put salt in there because sometimes it really seems like it needs it, depending on the flavor of the particular fruits and veggies therein, but I usually go without.